Rise of the ticks

(WZZM) Grand Rapids, Mich. - A disease- carrying insect has moved into West Michigan.

This year's wet spring has helped an infestation of ticks move to new locations.

Ned Walker, Entomologist at Michigan State Univeristy, says,"Within the five or six years it swept all the way up the state and into Sleeping Bear Dunes, it's slowly moving east to Ottawa County and Kent County. It's now endemic for that tick and disease."

Ticks are about the size of a sesame seed and carry diseases that can affect both humans and animals. The most common disease being Lyme Disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list symptoms of Lyme Disease as fever, headache, fatigue, and skin rash. For more information from the CDC click here.

The Michigan Department of Community Health says, "tick borne diseases are rare, but they do occur and can be serious if not properly diagnosed and treated."

Pediatrician Kara Morely-Smolek gives her advice for keeping your family safe this tick season in the video link above.